Assessment of Social Connection among Autistic and Non-Autistic Adults: A Proof of Concept Study for the Connections with Others Scales.

Background: A gap exists in measures available to assess levels of motivation, desire, and value associated with connecting with others. Moreover, few social connection scales have been developed with a goal of including autistic individuals in the sample to create a measure that has utility across neurodiverse populations. This study aims to develop a measure to assess different facets of social connection that is valid among both autistic and non-autistic adults.

The impact of measurement on clinical trials: Comparison of preliminary outcomes of a brief mobile intervention for autistic adults using multiple measurement approaches.

Initial studies of the emotional safety plan (ESP), a new, brief telehealth and mobile intervention to support autistic adults to cope with periods of distress, have reported feasibility and acceptability (Bal et al., 2023, Autism, 1-13). Herein we report the preliminary clinical outcomes of thirty-six autistic adults who developed a personalized ESP, with a specific interest in comparing "outcomes" demonstrated by different instruments and assessment frequencies in order to inform outcome measurement in future clinical trials.

The emotional support plan: Feasibility trials of a brief, telehealth-based mobile intervention to support coping for autistic adults.

Autistic adults may have difficulty coping during stressful periods, which could make them more vulnerable to depression and anxiety. We designed the emotional support plan (ESP) to help autistic people find ways to cope in stressful situations. Thirty-six autistic adults created an ESP and answered questions about their opinions of the ESP.

Low levels of discriminant validity between self-report measures of self-esteem, shame, and self-criticism: Implications for the measurement of self-evaluation and creation of the Negative Self-Evaluation Scale.

This article examined the discriminant and convergent validity of commonly used self-report measures of self-criticism, self-esteem, and shame. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) using multiple self-report measures of each construct showed low levels of discriminant validity between self-reported self-esteem, shame, and self-criticism and instead demonstrated correspondingly high levels of shared variance. However, bifactor analyses on the items across each measure suggested that self-report measures of self-esteem, shame, and self-criticism may contain distinct characteristics that are underrepresented in current measures of each construct.

Reflections on experiential training in meaning-centered psychotherapy: How MCP ended up facilitating professional wellbeing.

Objective: Meaning-centered psychotherapy (MCP) principles may provide a framework for engaging healthcare professionals in meaning-centered exploration as a novel approach to prevent burnout and enhance wellbeing in healthcare professionals through heightening personal meaning. This case study aimed to teach MCP to masters-trained social workers for use with medical patients. While the primary aim was to teach MCP to masters-trained social workers, this proof-of-concept project and this paper focus on a secondary aim of enhancing meaning and connection in the virtual workplace.